An international conference looking at the art of the religious orders in late medieval England will be held at the Courtauld Institute in London on the 17 May.

Recent scholarship has challenged the traditional consensus of a decline among the monastic and religious orders in England and elsewhere in Europe between 1350 and the dissolution of the monasteries in 1540, revealing an artistic tradition with considerable possibilities for investigation.
The conference will see established scholars and research students from the UK and abroad exploring some of these possibilities, including the importance of continuity and innovation, the patronage of superiors, and the expression of particular institutional and confessional identities. Many of the papers will also discuss little-known examples or provide new interpretations of late monastic art. The programme can be downloaded here.

17 May 2011: ‘Last Orders? The Art and Architecture of Religious Orders in England, c 1350—1540’, 10am to 6.15pm, Kenneth Clark Lecture Theatre, The Courtauld Institute of Art, Somerset House, Strand, London WC2R 0RN. For further information, send an email.